The Emley Moor Mast

Emley Moor (located at 53°36' North, 1°39' West) is an area of moorland near the village of Emley, near Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, England. It is the site of the NTL owned Emley Moor transmitting station, the transmission mast of which is the tallest free-standing structure in Europe at a height of 330.4 metres (1084 feet). Reaching the Tower Room (at the top of the concrete part of the tower at 900ft) involves a seven minute journey by lift: the antenna structure above this is a further 184ft. This is taller than 1 Canada Square, Britain's tallest building, which is only 244 metres high. However, it is not as tall as the Belmont TV mast in Lincolnshire, which is a guyed structure with a height of 1265 ft / 385m making it the tallest structure of any kind in the country.

The top of the current mast at Emley Moor is 594 metres above sea level, with the mast's foundations penetrating 6.1 metres into the ground. The whole structure, including foundations, weighs 11200 tonnes.

The current mast is the third to have occupied the site. The original 135 m (445 ft) tower was erected in 1956 to provide independent television broadcasts to the Yorkshire area. It was replaced in 1964 by a taller 385m (1265ft) guyed mast (identical to the structure still standing at Belmont).

On 19 March 1969, a combination of strong winds and the weight of ice that had formed around the top of the mast and on the guys brought the structure down. After a series of temporary masts, erection of the current concrete-built mast began in 1969 with transmissions commencing from the completed tower on 21 January 1971. It was designed by Ove Arup and Partners.

The Emley Moor mast broadcasts BBC1, BBC2, ITV1 Yorkshire, Channel 4, five, six digital television multiplexes, two digital radio multiplexes and two independent local radio stations (Galaxy Radio and Real FM) over an area of approximately 10,000 km². It is the main station for some 51 relays and repeaters throughout Yorkshire and surrounding counties.

The UK Government declared Emley Tower a Grade II Listed Building of 'significant architectural or historic interest' in 2002.

See also: list of towers